Much of Wales is on flood alert today with forecasters warning some places could see a month’s rain fall in 24 hours.

Flooding hit parts of North Wales as heavy rain struck in a band across North and Mid Wales today, with an estimated 2ins of rain expected to fall in 24 hours.

Figures from WeatherOnline showed that in the 12 hours from midnight until noon today, some 26mm of rain had fallen at the measuring station at Aberdaron, 16mm at Rhyl, 15mm in Capel Cuig and 13mm at Lake Vyrnwy.

As well as the deluge hitting Mid and North Wales, Glamorgan's final home T20 cricket match of the summer was abandoned as rain continued to fall in the capital.

In Gwynedd, fire crews were dealing with localised flooding at homes at Pwllheli, Llaniestyn, Aberdaron and Botwnnog, while the M50 motorway into south Wales has been partly closed, from the M5 junction. The A5118 in Flintshire was also partially closed.

The Highways Agency also said that part of the M50 motorway heading from the M5 to junction two, Tewkesbury to Ross-on-Wye, had been closed because of standing water.

Despite the weather, the Wakestock music and wakeboarding festival was starting Abersoch on the Llyn peninsula, with 15,000 people booked for a muddy weekend.

The Environment Agency was urging communities to be prepared for flooding and had three flood warnings in place at Gower and on the Conwy and Clwyd rivers.

Craig Woolhouse, head of flood incident management at the Environment Agency, said: “We are expecting some very significant flooding in the coming days across large parts of the country and would strongly urge people to sign up to flood warnings, keep a close eye on the forecasts for their area and be prepared for flooding.

“We would also ask that people stay safe, by keeping out of dangerous flood water and not attempting to walk or drive through it.

“The Environment Agency has already opened incident rooms and has teams out on the ground checking on flood defences and clearing any blockages in order to reduce the risk of flooding as much as possible.”

Nick Prebble, a forecaster with MeteoGroup, the Press Association’s weather division, said one indication was that up to 100mm (3.9 inches) could fall over central and southern England in a 24 hour period but it was likely to be less.

He said: “There is quite a large area of rain edging in from south-east England and making its way westwards through the course of today.

“Much of England and Wales will be affected by rain.”

The Met Office issued an amber weather warning – the second highest, and meaning “be prepared”.

Tony Waters, deputy chief forecaster at the Met Office, said: “We are expecting spells of very heavy and thundery rain across a wide area of the UK in the next few days, with worst affected spots likely to be in central and northern parts of the country.

“Rainfall totals could be 20-40mm widely across warning areas, but some places could see around 100mm of rain through today and into tomorrow.

“Given the saturated ground from the record rainfall in June, this could cause significant disruption – including difficult driving conditions and flooding in some areas.”

On Friday morning, the only flood alert in Wales remained on Swansea Bay and the Gower coast stretching from Pontardulais to Llantwit Major, with a warning of high tides and heavy winds.

Dyfed Powys Local Resilience Forum, which coordinates the response to incidents reminded motorists to take care driving and not to approach areas of flooded water.

A statement from the forum said: “Don’t take any unnecessary risks – stay away from these roads until the weather conditions significantly improve.”

The Environment Agency put Gwynedd, Conwy, Denbighshire, Flintshire, Wrexham, Powys and Ceredigion on amber alert for floods, the second most severe risk.

The rest of Wales is on yellow alert for floods – with people urged to remain alert and ensure they keep up to date with the forecast.

Torrential rain led to flooded homes, road closures and havoc on public transport across parts of the country today.

Dozens of flood warnings and alerts were in place as the latest downpours continued to fall on ground already saturated after three months of record-breaking rainfall across the UK.

Almost 100 properties were flooded, the M50 was among a number of roads closed by the bad weather and flooding and landslips caused delays on major rail routes.

Six people had to be rescued from a flooded caravan park in North Yorkshire after heavy rain left the site under 2ft (0.6m) of water.

And the wash-out summer is set to continue in the coming weeks, with forecasters predicting the weather is still likely to be inclement when the Olympics start – although conditions are not expected to be as bad as they have been.

With continuing downpours tonight, the Environment Agency warned the country was “not out of the woods yet” in the latest floods to hit the country in recent weeks.

The worst affected area tonight and into Saturday morning is expected to be south west England, which has already seen extremely heavy rain, with 1.6in (40mm) falling in just half an hour in Somerset this afternoon.

Forecasters said a further 3.2in (80mm) is expected to fall across the South West tonight.

Northumberland could also see very heavy rain and flooding this evening, the Environment Agency said.

The south Pennines and north Midlands, including the areas around Manchester, Sheffield, North Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire which have been among the worst areas hit by the latest floods, also remain at risk of flooding into the weekend.

Craig Woolhouse, Environment Agency head of flood incident management, said: “We would urge people to remain on alert for flooding, especially in Devon, Cornwall and Somerset.

“It has been raining heavily today, and the situation could escalate quite quickly.

“We would also ask people to remember to stay away from flood water, and do not walk or drive through it, as it is often fast- moving and can contain sewage and other debris.”

Many parts of the country have received more than half the average rainfall for July in just one day, and the Met Office is warning of continued heavy rain this evening and into tomorrow.

Severe weather warnings were in place across the Midlands and northern England, Wales, and also for parts of Gloucestershire, Somerset and Devon.

There were 50 flood warnings and more than 120 less serious flood alerts in place tonight.

The RSPCA urged farmers to move livestock from low-lying fields and ensure animals had access to food and shelter where possible, and for pet owners to keep their animals safe at all times.

The Environment Agency said 94 properties had been flooded across parts of England and Wales.

The Prince of Wales’s visit to Hebden Bridge, which was badly hit by the floods which devastated parts of West Yorkshire and Lancashire two weeks ago, was delayed by the weather and he faced heavy rain as he toured the town.

The Highways Agency said the M50 in Worcestershire was closed westbound between the M5 and junction 2 and eastbound between junctions 2 and 1 due to the weather causing hazardous driving conditions.

On the M1 around junction 27 at Heanor, spray and surface water made driving conditions difficult and reduced visibility, while roads were closed in Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire.

The London to Scotland East Coast main railway line was hit for the second time in little over a week, with services between Peterborough and Doncaster subject to 90-minute hold-ups, while other rail services faced delays, cancellations and diversions.

Visitors to Silverstone for the F1 British Grand Prix were facing a weekend washout as rain deluged the circuit.

The weather led to disappointment for revellers after organisers cancelled the MFest music festival amid safety concerns.

The Human League, Texas, Bob Geldof and Cher Lloyd were all booked to play at the two-day concert at Harewood House in Leeds.

Police were carrying out extra patrols in the Ponteland, Alnwick, Rothbury, Belford and Morpeth areas of Northumberland amid concerns about flooding.

Northumbria Police Superintendent Andy McDyer said: “We are getting extra officers out to the areas that could see the most rain this evening to offer reassurance and support for local people.

“We continue to advise residents that might experience flooding to plan ahead as much as possible, get advice from the relevant agencies and prepare in advance.

“We don’t want to unnecessarily cause concern but we want everyone to be as prepared as possible and make sure that those affected have all the support they need.

“Anyone caught out by the rain and on the roads should stay calm and avoid any flooded roads and areas where possible.

“Allow extra time for any journeys and drive according to the conditions where you are.

“Reduce speed, keep your distances and make sure you are visible to other road users by having your lights and fog lights on. Be alert for heavy accumulations of water and slow down going through them.”

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